DVD changer UX

ABSTRACT

A user experience for displaying and organizing content available on discs in an external media changer is provided. A media content organizer for identifying discs, retrieving supplemental information, and presenting a display of the discs and disc information is also provided.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit of U.S. Provisional Application No.60/707,153 filed on Aug. 11, 2005.

STATEMENT REGARDING FEDERALLY SPONSORED RESEARCH OR DEVELOPMENT

Not applicable.

BACKGROUND

Digital Versatile Discs (DVDs) provide a convenient format for storageof large data collections, such as movies. A variety of DVD playbackdevices are commercially available, including devices that have discchangers capable of storing dozens or hundreds of discs. A desired discwithin a changer can be selected for playback on a television or othervideo display connected to the playback device. The DVD playback deviceis typically controlled using remotes or keypads that are dedicated tothe playback device, with control information being provided on theconnected video display.

Conventional computer systems often include one, or possibly a few, DVDplayback devices contained within the computer housing. Such playbackdevices are typically dedicated devices for use in a computer. Thesededicated devices can be controlled within the computer operatingsystem, and playback of a DVD can be accomplished using the videomonitor for the computer. The number of DVD discs and/or playbackdevices which can be contained within the computer is limited, however,by factors such as the size of the computer housing and the ability ofan operating system to uniquely identify a device.

SUMMARY

In various embodiments, a system and method are provided for allowing acomputer to control an external DVD playback device. The system andmethod allow control of the external DVD playback device while requiringlittle or no additional or specialized equipment.

In another embodiment, an interface and user experience for allowing acomputer to control an external media changer and playback device areprovided. The interface allows a user to select a disc within thechanger, view details about a movie or other content contained on thedisc, and load the disc for playback on the computer's video monitor orother display device. The discs within the external changer can bepresented to the user in a gallery of DVD's that are available forplayback. In an embodiment, the gallery can also include detailedinformation about some or all of the available discs, such as the coverart for the DVD or a movie synopsis.

In still another embodiment, application program interfaces forcontrolling an external media changer are provided. The applicationprogram interfaces allow an external media changer to be controlledusing a computer, including identifying the discs within the mediachanger and playing back the content of a DVD on the display or monitorfor the computer.

This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in asimplified form that are further described below in the DetailedDescription. This Summary is not intended to identify key features oressential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended tobe used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating a method in accordance with anembodiment of the invention.

FIGS. 2 a and 2 b are examples of display galleries according to anembodiment of the invention.

FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating an overview of a system inaccordance with an embodiment of the invention.

FIG. 4 is a block diagram of an application program interface accordingto an embodiment of the invention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

I. Overview

In an embodiment, the invention provides an integrated method and systemthat allows a user to control an external media changer and playbackdevice using a computer. The system and method allow the changer to becontrolled from the computer, including loading and unloading of DVD's.Any media content on a DVD can be displayed on the computer's videodisplay device.

In another embodiment, DVD's available in the external media changer canbe displayed in a gallery along with other DVD's located in thecomputer, such as DVD's in a playback device or changer within thecomputer or DVD's that have been legally copied and stored on a storagedrive. When the DVD's are displayed in the gallery, additionalinformation about movies stored on the discs can be provided to theuser, such as the cover art for the DVD or a movie synopsis. To obtainthe additional information, the identity of the discs available to theuser is determined. The disc identity is then used to retrieve theadditional information from a database, such as a third party dataproviding service.

In still another embodiment, an application program interface enablingcontrol of the external changer and playback device is provided.

II. Identifying and Browsing Available DVD's

In an embodiment, DVD's and/or CD's available for viewing on a computercan be displayed to a user in a single gallery. In such an embodiment,the number of available discs is first identified. This can be done bychecking each location for a disc in one or more connected internal orexternal disc changers, disc drives, or other disc storage and/or discplayback devices. Additionally, other storage devices, such as aninternal hard drive, can be checked to see if a DVD has been copied inits entirety to the storage device. Preferably, such copied DVD's can belocated in one or more predetermined directories in the storage device.Each disc can then be checked to identify the disc type. In anembodiment, a disc can be a DVD, an audio CD, a data CD, a blank DVD orCD, or an unknown or unreadable disc. The disc type for a disc can bedetermined by any convenient method. For example, in an embodiment, thedisc type for a disc in a drive can be determined by scanning the disc.For a disc in a storage slot, the disc can be moved to a drive and thenscanned. Alternatively, a disc can be scanned for determination of thedisc type when it is first inserted into a media changer. In anotherembodiment, a request to perform disc identification on one or morediscs can be sent by a controlling computer, possibly in response to anaction by a user of the computer. The disc slots or drives that do notcontain a disc can also be identified as empty. The disc type can thenbe stored for each available disc slot or drive.

Once the disc type for a disc location is known, the disc can be scannedto determine one or more identifiers for the disc. Preferably,identifying information is determined for at least any available DVD'sthat are present in a DVD storage or playback device. In an embodiment,the identifying information can be a title or name for the disc. Inanother embodiment, other types of information may be directly availableto identify the disc, such as a serial number. In still anotherembodiment, an identifier for a disc can be calculated by reading aninitial amount of information from the disc and manipulating theinformation to create an identifier. For example, header information fora DVD disc can be used as input for a hash function to generate anumerical identifier.

After determining an identifier for some or all of the available discs,supplemental information can be retrieved for each disc having anidentifier. The supplemental information can include a variety ofinformation that is not typically available from an initial scan of aDVD or other disc. In an embodiment, the supplemental information caninclude a movie title, cover art for the DVD, release date for themovie, a plot summary, the MPAA rating, a review or rating for themovie, names of the movie chapters on the DVD, names of actors in themovie, and/or various other types of information related to the DVDcontent.

In an embodiment, supplemental information about a DVD movie disc orother disc can be retrieved from an external source. To retrieve thedata, one or more of the identifiers determined for the disc isforwarded to a service that provides supplemental information.Preferably, a hash value based on the disc that uniquely identifies thedisc is provided to the service provider. The service provideridentifies the desired supplemental information based on the one or moreidentifiers and returns the information to the user. An example of athird party service provider that provides media information is WMIS.Note that supplemental information can also be retrieved for DVD moviesstored in storage devices other than a media changer or playback device,as long as the one or more identifiers are available and associated withthe movie. For example, an appropriate hash function identifier for aDVD movie can be manually associated with a movie stored on a hard driveby the user. Once supplemental information has been retrieved for aparticular disc, some or all of the supplemental information can bestored locally.

After retrieving supplemental information for the identified discs, atleast a portion of the supplemental information can be used to provide agallery or other display format for the user to browse available DVDmovies. In an embodiment, the supplemental information includes at leasta title for the movie and the cover art for the DVD. The title, coverart, and/or other supplemental information can then be aggregated toform a gallery of available DVD movie choices. For example, the titleand cover art for each available movie can be displayed in a gallery.Note that the number of selections in the gallery may result in themovies being displayed in a scrolling format. This allows the cover artand title to be displayed at a size that is easily viewed while stillproviding all of the available movies. Alternatively, the gallery can bedisplayed as a series of gallery screens that the user can move between,with each gallery screen containing a subset of the available movies. Ifno supplemental information is available for a DVD, the DVD can bedisplayed in the gallery using a default icon, or the DVD can be omittedfrom the gallery.

In an embodiment, the cover art and/or the title in the gallery can beconfigured as menu links to additional actions that the user can performwith a movie, such as playing the movie or viewing more informationabout the DVD. For example, the cover art can be configured as a link totake the user to a separate screen, such as a second-level gallery, whenactivated. When the cover art is selected, the user is provided with asecond type of display gallery, which includes additional portions ofthe supplemental information. In another embodiment, the supplementalinformation for a DVD or other disc can be organized into multiplelayers. These multiple layers can be navigated in order to view theretrieved supplemental information.

In still another embodiment, a gallery such as the top level gallery candisplay cover art representing a group of related DVD's. For example, aseason of shows for a television program can be stored on multipleDVD's. Rather than displaying each disc for the season as a separateitem in the top level gallery, a single link (such as cover art for oneof the discs) can be provided for all the related discs. The single linkcan be in the form of cover art for one of the discs, a title for one ofthe discs, or a generic title referring to the group of related discs.When the link is selected, a second level gallery can be providedshowing all of the related discs. The user can then select an individualdisc from this second level gallery to get supplemental informationand/or playback the content of the disc.

In some embodiments, accessing the supplemental information for one ormore discs may require retrieval of a portion of the supplementalinformation from an external source. Once supplemental information isretrieved from an external source, some or all of the supplementalinformation can be stored locally, such as in a cache file on thecontrolling computer. For example, once the cover art for a movie isretrieved, it can be stored locally on a computer for a fixed timeperiod or for as long as a corresponding disc remains in the mediachanger. Alternatively, portions of the supplemental information can beretrieved each time the information is to be displayed.

The cover art and/or the second-level gallery can also have a link toallow playback of a DVD. Even though DVD may be located in an externaldisc drive or media changer, the playback of the DVD can take place onthe computer using the computer's video display. For example, theplayback can take place in a window on the computer display.

FIG. 1 provides an example of a method for browsing the available DVD'sand other discs on a computer according to an embodiment of theinvention. In the embodiment shown in FIG. 1, DVD's available to acomputer via an external media changer are identified 110. Any othertypes of discs in the external media changer can also be identified.Additionally, DVD's in other locations, such as an internal or dedicatedDVD drive in the computer can also be identified. Supplementalinformation is retrieved 120 regarding identified DVD's. Thesupplemental information can be retrieved just for DVD's in the externalmedia changer, or the supplemental information can also be retrieved forDVD's available to the computer in other locations. After retrieving thesupplemental information, at least a portion of the supplementalinformation for each DVD can be aggregated together for display 130 in agallery.

FIGS. 2 a and 2 b provide an example of galleries for displayinginformation about available discs according to an embodiment of theinvention. In the embodiment depicted in FIG. 2 a, a gallery is shownincluding cover art 215 for various available DVD's. In such anembodiment, each item of DVD cover art can serve as a navigation linkfor either viewing information about the disc and/or playing back themovie or other content on the disc. Additionally, the gallery canprovide selection buttons 225 for performing various functions.Selection buttons are included for sorting the discs by title, moviereview rating, or release year. Other sort buttons could also beincluded to allow sorting on other types of supplemental information,such as a movie category (action, romance, etc.) or MPAA rating. Buttons235 are also provided to allow loading of new discs into a changer andfor disc management. Still other buttons can be available on the gallerypage, or a “More” button 245 can be provided to bring up an interfacewith additional actions.

FIG. 2 b shows a gallery for displaying supplemental information about asingle DVD. In an embodiment, a gallery such as the one shown in FIG. 2b is accessed by selecting a link on a higher or top level gallery pagehaving the format of FIG. 2 a. In FIG. 2 b, supplemental information 255that has been retrieved for the DVD is displayed along with a button 265for beginning playback of the movie on the DVD.

In various embodiments, the methods of this invention can be carried outon any suitable computer that is connected to one or more external DVD(or other media) playback and/or storage devices, such as a homepersonal computer. The computer can include a bus or other communicationmechanism for communicating information, which interconnects subsystemsand devices, such as processors (e.g., CPU), system memory (e.g., RAM),storage devices (e.g., ROM), disk drives (e.g., magnetic or optical),communication interfaces (e.g., modem or Ethernet card), display (e.g.,CRT or LCD), and input devices (e.g., keyboard, mouse, trackball,infrared or radio frequency emitter/receiver, or remote control). Thedisk drives can include one or more internal DVD playback devices.Preferably, the computer includes a remote control or other infrared orradio frequency controller configured to facilitate browsing andplayback of movies.

In an embodiment, the computer performs specific operations by aprocessor executing one or more sequences of one or more instructionscontained in system memory. Such instructions may be read into systemmemory from another computer readable medium, such as a static storagedevice or a disk drive. In alternative embodiments, hard-wired circuitrymay be used in place of or in combination with software instructions toimplement the invention.

The term “computer readable medium” refers to any medium thatparticipates in providing instructions to a processor for execution.Such a medium may take many forms, including but not limited tonon-volatile media and volatile media. Non-volatile media includes, forexample, optical or magnetic disks. Volatile media includes dynamicmemory.

Common forms of computer readable media includes, for example, floppydisk, flexible disk, hard disk, magnetic tape, any other magneticmedium, CD-ROM, any other optical medium, punch cards, paper tape, anyother physical medium with patterns of holes, RAM, PROM, EPROM,FLASH-EPROM, any other memory chip or cartridge.

In an embodiment of the invention, execution of the sequences ofinstructions to practice the invention is performed by a single computersystem. According to other embodiments of the invention, two or morecomputer systems coupled by a communication link (e.g., LAN, PSTN, orwireless network) may perform the sequence of instructions to practicethe invention in coordination with one another. A computer system maytransmit and receive messages, data, and instructions, includingprogram, i.e., application code, through a communication link and acommunication interface. Received program code may be executed by aprocessor as it is received, and/or stored in a disk drive or othernon-volatile storage for later execution.

The computer can be connected to one or more external media playback,storage, or playback and storage devices. The external devices can beconnected in any convenient manner, such as using a firewire or USB typeconnection. The external devices receive commands from the computer andprovide information and/or the playback video feed to the computer viathe connection.

In another embodiment, the invention provides a media content organizer.The media content organizer can include a media identification servicefor determining the number, type, and identifying information regardingany discs available to the organizer.

The media content organizer can also include a data retrieval servicefor retrieving supplemental information about available media. The dataretrieval service receives media identification information from themedia identification service. The media identification information isthen used to retrieve supplemental information regarding the identifiedmedia. In an embodiment, the data retrieval service forwards theidentification information to an outside service provider and thenreceives back the supplemental information. In another embodiment, thedata retrieval service can use the identification information to query adatabase, such as an external or remote database, that contains thesupplemental information.

Additionally, the media content organizer can include an aggregator foraggregating information about media contained in one or more externalmedia sources, such as external DVD changers or drives. Data about mediain other drives, such as an internal hard drive or an internal DVD drivecan also be aggregated with the information about the external DVDdrives.

The media content organizer can further include a media presentationservice for displaying the media information that corresponds to themedia content selection. Turning to the media presentation service ofthis embodiment, the media presentation displays media information thatcorresponds to the media content selection. The media presentationservice also controls the operation of the external media source. Themedia presentation service works as a graphical interface. The graphicalinterface has a form of a media gallery. The computer automaticallyloads the graphical interface. Once the graphical interface is loaded, auser has the option to select from some or all of the available mediacontent selections that were identified earlier by the computer. At thispoint, a user can choose a media content selection and view some or allof media information categories that corresponds to the media contentselection. The media presentation service further provides a user theability to navigate through pages of the graphical interface. The mediapresentation service also allows a user the ability to play the contentsof the media content selection with visual and audio capabilities for afull multimedia experience.

In still another embodiment, the media content organizer can include anavigator to allow the user to browse available DVD's and navigatethrough supplemental information using a graphical user interface.

FIG. 3 depicts an example of a system suitable for performing variousembodiments of the invention. In FIG. 3, a computer 310 is shown with avariety of available input devices or controllers, including a keyboard320, a mouse 322, and a remote control 324. Preferably, one or more ofthese input devices is available for providing input to the computer.The computer 310 is also connected to a monitor or display device 330.The computer 310 can also be connected to one or more external mediachangers 340. Additionally, computer 310 is connected to a network 350,such as the world-wide web. Via network 350, computer 310 cancommunicate with one or more external computers 360, which can provideremote services or information.

In the embodiment shown in FIG. 3, computer 310 is operated to performthe functions of a media content organizer 370. The media contentorganizer 370 includes an identification service 371 for identifyingavailable DVD's in external media changers. Optionally, identificationservice 371 can also identify DVD's located in playback or storagedevices that are internal to or dedicated to computer 310. Media contentorganizer 370 also includes a data retrieval service 372 for obtainingsupplemental information about identified DVD's from an outside serviceprovider. Media content organizer 370 further includes an aggregator foraggregating supplemental information obtained about the identifiedDVD's. Additionally, media content organizer 370 includes a mediapresentation service 374 for playing back a DVD that is available to thecomputer 310, either in an external media changer or in an internalplayback device. Media content organizer 370 also contains a navigator375 for providing a graphical user experience or interface for displayof the supplemental information and control of the external mediachangers.

IV. Controlling an External Changer and Playback Device

In another embodiment, an application program interface is provided toallow control of the external disc changer and playback device. Theapplication program interface provides the commands for manipulating theexternal disc changer, such as commands for loading a disc into theplayback device, unloading a disc from the playback device, opening thechanger to allow addition or removal of a disc, and playback of thedisc.

In an embodiment, a top level Media Changer interface can be used tocontrol an external DVD changer and/or playback device. In such anembodiment, the MediaChanger interface can expose the followingproperties for use by other applications: A) DriveDiscData—Getsinformation about the discs in the drives, as further described below;B) IsLocked—Specifies whether the media changer is currently locked byany application; and C) SlotDiscData—Gets information about the discs inslots, as further described below.

The Media Changer interface can also expose the following methods foruse by other applications: A) EjectDisc—Ejects the disc from thespecified slot; B) LoadDisc—Loads the disk in the specified slot intothe specified drive; C) Lock—Locks the media changer for use by thisapplication only; D) RescanDisc—Causes Media Center to rescan the discin the specified drive; E) UnloadDisc—Unloads the disc in the specifieddrive; F) Unlock—Unlocks the media changer if this application lockedit; and G) PlaybackDisc—Plays back the content contained on the disc ina specified drive.

In another embodiment, a DiscData interface is also provided to enableadd-in applications to get information about a disc in a disc changer orplayback device. In such an embodiment, the DiscData interface exposesthe following properties: A) Address—Gets the index of the changer slotthat holds the disc; B) DiscId—Gets the disc identifier; C)DiscType—Gets the disc type; D) DrivePath—Gets the path to the discdrive; E) Properties —Gets properties describing the disc; and F)VolumeLabel—Gets the volume label of the disc. The information providedby the DiscData interface is made available via either the SlotDiscDataor DriveDiscData property of the media changer interface.

FIG. 4 shows an example of the organization of an application programinterface according to an embodiment of the invention. In the embodimentdepicted in FIG. 4, a Media Changer API 400 includes methods for lockinga changer 411, unlocking a changer 412, verifying lock status of achanger 413, ejecting a disc 415, loading a disc 416, unloading a disc417, rescanning a disc 418, and playing back a disc 419. Media ChangerAPI 400 also includes a Drive Disc Data Collection API 430. The DriveDisc Data Collection API provides methods for retrieval and/or storageof information for disc type and ID 432, volume label 433, metadata 434,and drive path 435. Media Changer API 400 further includes a Slot DiscData Collection API 440. The Slot Disc Data Collection API providesmethods for retrieval and/or storage of information for disc type and ID442, volume label 443, and metadata 444.

In an embodiment, the Properties property of the DiscData interface canprovide for a Movie DVD the properties of Director, Title, ReleaseDate,MPAARating, and Duration. In another embodiment, other properties couldbe made available, depending on the content of the disc. In anembodiment, the DiscType can be a DVD, an audio CD, a data CD, a blankDVD, a blank CD, an invalid disc that is unreadable, an unknown discthat has not been checked or scanned to determine a DiscType, or empty.

The application program interfaces can be used to control a variety ofexternal media changers. In a preferred embodiment, an external mediachanger can expose the drives, changers, and other functionality withinthe media changer as a known or standard type of optical drive, such asa standard Windows optical drive.

In another embodiment, the application program interfaces are used tocontrol an external media changer that exposes an interface capable ofreceiving instructions from the application program interfaces. In suchan embodiment, the external media changer is capable of receivinginstructions to perform a variety of functions. The functions caninclude: providing product data about the media changer; providing thecurrent status of the media changer; providing the current status forsome or all of the elements in the media changer; initializing some orall of the elements in the media changer; moving a disc within thechanger; and providing volume tag information about one or morerequested changer elements. The media changer should also be able toprovide information about the parameters of the changer. Theseparameters for the media changer should indicate whether the changer hasthe following features: using non-volatile memory for statusinformation; having the capability to position the disc transportmechanism to a particular location and/or element; whether a drive canbe used independently for storage of a disc without reading the disc;whether a media changer supports volume identification; and whether thevolume information can be replaced. Additionally, the parameters shouldallow a changer to indicate whether a disc can be moved from a givenstorage slot to an IEport; from a storage slot to a drive; from anIEport to a storage slot; and from a drive to a storage slot. Theparameters should also allow a media changer to indicate whether thechanger can position its transport to a particular element, such as astorage slot, drive, or IEport. In an embodiment, the various types ofinformation provided by the media changer can be received by theapplication program interface for using performing actions on the mediachanger.

In still another embodiment, the application program interfaces are usedto control an external media changer that exposes an interface capableof receiving the following Microsoft Windows control codes, or controlcodes that perform equivalent functions:

-   IOCTL_CHANGER_GET_ELEMENT_STATUS;-   IOCTL_CHANGER_GET_PARAMETERS;-   IOCTL_CHANGER_GET_PRODUCT_DATA; IOCTL_CHANGER_GET_STATUS;-   IOCTL_CHANGER_INITIALIZE_ELEMENT_STATUS;-   IOCTL_CHANGER_MOVE_MEDIUM; and-   IOCTL_CHANGER_QUERY_VOLUME_TAGS. In such an embodiment, the results    from IOCTL_CHANGER_GET_PARAMETERS should indicate values for the    following feature flags: CHANGER_STATUS_NON_VOLATILE;    CHANGER_POSITION_TO_ELEMENT; CHANGER_STORAGE_DRIVE;    CHANGER_VOLUME_IDENTIFICATION; and CHANGER_VOLUME_REPLACE. The    results from IOCTL_CHANGER_GET_PARAMETERS should also be able to    indicate values for the following movement flags: For movement from    a storage slot to another element, CHANGER_TO_IEPORT and    CHANGER_TO_DRIVE; For movement from an IEport, CHANGER_TO_SLOT; and    for movement from a drive, CHANGER_TO_SLOT. The results from    IOCTL_CHANGER_GET_PARAMETERS should further be able to indicate    values for the following position flags: CHANGER_TO_SLOT;    CHANGER_TO_IEPORT; and CHANGER_TO_DRIVE.

Although the subject matter has been described in language specific tostructural features and/or methodological acts, it is to be understoodthat the subject matter defined in the appended claims is notnecessarily limited to the specific features or acts described above.Rather, the specific features and acts described above are disclosed asexample forms of implementing the claims.

1. A method for organizing media content, comprising: identifying, by afirst computing process, one or more media discs stored on an externalmedia changer; retrieving, by a second computing process, supplementalinformation corresponding to each identified media disc; displayingcover art, by a third computing process, of at least a first media discof the identified media discs in an aggregated gallery comprised of acover art associated with the first media disc, wherein the cover art,when displayed as part of the aggregated gallery, is a selectable linkto provide additional supplemental information for at least a secondmedia disc of the identified media discs, the first media disc and thesecond media disc are different media discs; in response to a userselecting the cover art for the first media disc from the aggregatedgallery, displaying, in a second gallery, at least a portion of thesupplemental information for the second media disc, wherein the at leasta portion of the supplemental information for the second media disc iscomprised of a cover art associated with the second media disc; and thefirst computing process, the second computing process, and the thirdcomputing process are performed by one or more computing devices.
 2. Themethod of claim 1, wherein the retrieving step further comprisesretrieving supplemental information, including cover art, from a remotesource.
 3. The method of claim 1, wherein the identifying step furthercomprises determining at least one identifier for the first media disc.4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising navigatingthrough the displayed supplemental information.
 5. The method accordingto claim 1, wherein the identifying step further comprises determiningat least one of: a number, a type, or other identifiers associated tothe first media disc.
 6. The method according to claim 1, wherein theretrieving step further comprises forwarding media identificationinformation to an outside service provider.
 7. The method according toclaim 1, further comprising aggregating information corresponding tomedia contained in one or more external media sources.
 8. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein at least a portion of the supplementalinformation is stored locally for a fixed period of time.
 9. The methodaccording to claim 1, wherein the retrieving step further comprisesdisplaying at least a portion of the supplemental information each timethe supplemental information is retrieved.
 10. A media contentorganizer, comprising: an identification service that determines anidentifier for at least one media content disc in an external mediachanger; a data retrieval service that retrieves supplementalinformation, including cover art, corresponding to one or moreidentified media content discs; and a media presentation service thatdisplays, on a display device, an aggregated gallery and a secondgallery, the aggregated gallery is comprised of a cover art graphicalrepresentation of a first media content disc, the second gallery, whichis displayed in response to a selection of the cover art graphicalrepresentation of the first media content disc from the aggregategallery, is comprised of cover art for a second media content disc, thesecond media content disc is related to, but different from, the firstmedia content disc, such that the first media content disc and thesecond media content disc are media of a similar content type.
 11. Thesystem according to claim 10, wherein the identification servicedetermines at least one of: a number, a type, or other identifiers for amedia source.
 12. The system according to claim 10, further comprisingan aggregator that aggregates information corresponding to mediainformation contained in the external media changer.
 13. The systemaccording to claim 10, further comprising one or more external mediasources that provide media content.
 14. The system according to claim10, wherein the data retrieval service forwards identificationinformation to an outside service provider and receives the supplementalinformation.
 15. The system according to claim 10, wherein the secondgallery displays cover art in a scrolling format for the second mediacontent disc.
 16. The system according to claim 10, wherein the displaydevice displays a series of aggregate gallery screens that a user cannavigate between, wherein each aggregate gallery screen includes asubset of the at least one media disc.
 17. The system according to claim10, wherein the cover art is a menu link to one or more actions.
 18. Thesystem of claim 10, wherein the second gallery is further comprised of:a top-level gallery that displays a first portion of supplemental datafor the second media content disc; and a second-level gallery thatdisplays a second portion of the supplemental data for the second mediacontent disc.
 19. One or more computer-readable storage memories havingcomputer-executable instructions embodied thereon, that when executedperform a method for organizing media content, the method comprises:identifying one or more media content discs having video contentembodied thereon, the one or more media content discs are stored on anexternal media changer, wherein the one or more media content discs areidentified by identifying information; retrieving supplementalinformation, including cover art, corresponding to each identified mediacontent disc of the one or more media content discs, wherein thesupplemental information is retrieved from an external source based onthe identifying information; displaying a first portion of thesupplemental information corresponding to a first media content item ofthe identified media content discs in a first-level gallery, wherein thefirst portion of supplemental information includes cover art configuredwith a menu to a second-level gallery associated with a second mediacontent item of the identified media content discs, such that the firstmedia content item and the second media content item are differentcontent items having a similar content type; and displaying a secondportion of the supplemental information in the second-level gallerycorresponding to a selected cover art menu link for the first contentitem from the first portion of the supplemental information, wherein thesecond-level gallery includes cover art for the second media contentitem.